A Different Kind of Exciting
by creativia
Summary: Masaomi feels that Mikado needs help with his "lady wooing" skills. So in order to help his romantically inept friend,he decides to drag Mikado to the famous host club in order to see how the "experts" do it.Will the host club members see these two Raira boys as host club material? And can they help Mikado with his crush at all?Other drama occurs.(A fairly lighthearted/cute story.)
1. Chapter 1 (1st Day at the Host Club)

**Chapter 1**

"Masaomi…" Mikado whined again as his best friend dragged him into the unknown private school."Why are we coming here again?"

Masaomi sighed, and flung one arm up overdramatically. His other arm was already slung around Mikado's neck and dragging him forward.

"Why because, Mikado, you are completely hopeless in pursuing your affections for the dear Miss Anri. So since you ignore my wise lady advice, I figured I'd show you how some experts do it. I hear this club is pretty famous for wooing ladies, so surely watching them will help you."

Mikado sighed, knowing that arguing wouldn't do any good. Masaomi opened the door to a room titled Music Room #3 and rose petals flew at them. The petals flew in their faces. Mikado had to blow them off of his face so he would be able to see anything.

As they looked in, it appeared the club's festivities had already started. Several nicely dressed young men in uniforms were entertaining many nicely dressed young ladies. At first, nobody seemed to notice they had come in.

Just then, a tall teen boy with dark hair and glasses holding a little black book came over to them.

"We have not seen you two around here before. Do you go here? I do not see any school uniforms."

"Nope! I just heard how famous this club was for wooing ladies, so I figured bringing this guy here, to see how the experts do it, could help him with his own chick wooing struggles." Masaomi replied enthusiastically, pulling Mikado's head in closer to his own as he said this.

Mikado clenched his teeth in irritation and pulled himself out of his best friend's arm. Mikado had also blushed at what Masaomi had stated.

"Is it alright for us to do that?" Masaomi asked.

In the next second another tall teen boy, with longish shiny blonde hair and blue eyes, appeared next to the first one.

"Why of course it's alright! Thank you so much for noticing our club's charms!" The blonde boy spoke with a bow.

"My name is Tamaki Suoh, president of this here fine club! We make our priority meeting the needs of any guest who walks through our doors!"

This Tamaki reminded Mikado of another annoying blonde he knew…

"So tell me, are you two gay?" Tamaki inquired suddenly.

Mikado's eyes widened as he blushed at this. He glanced away mortified.

Masaomi blushed also but laughed nervously."No, we're not gay. Like I said, I just wanted to show my best friend here how some experts charm fine young ladies. I figured watching you all would be a good example." Masaomi looked off into the distance and dramatically put a hand to his forehead, causing Mikado to roll his eyes at his friend's antics.

"I have tried my hardest to share with him my own flirtatious skills, but alas, he's so far gone he needed the most help that he could get."

Mikado blushed brightly again. Gosh this whole experience was already too humiliating!

"M-Masaomi! I-I am not so far gone! And-and I never said I wanted your help in the first place! I don't need to learn how to woo ladies!" Mikado was so embarrassed that Masaomi dragged him hear and made him seem like a lost cause romantic to these people they didn't even know!

Masaomi raised his eyebrows at Mikado and had a mischievous glint in his eyes."Oh really? Then why do you blush every time I even mention Anri to you?"

Mikado's bright blush returned and he looked away from them.

"Do you see what I mean? So it is alright for us to watch?"

"Yes of course! I would certainly love to help in any way that I can!"

Mikado wasn't sure if he could handle two of them...

* * *

The duo followed Tamaki over to the girls. Some of the girls who had noticed the two new boys already began to crowd around them at one of the couches.

"Oh my gosh! The dark-haired boy is so adorable!"

Mikado wondered how many times he was going to blush while being here. Several girls fawned over Mikado's adorableness. Even though they were gushing about how cute he was, Mikado figured he wouldn't want a girl he liked to find him cute like some sort of small baby animal…this wasn't exactly what he was going for. Yet unfortunately, due to his baby-face-like features, he was used to it. It really was no wonder he hadn't heard of any girls' crushing on him in the past…they took one look at him and that was how they viewed him. It wasn't exactly the appearance girls looked for in a guy they wanted to date…

Tamaki and Masaomi explained to the girls with enthusiasm why Masaomi and Mikado were visiting. This of course made Mikado blush again and try to defend himself which of course just seemed to prove their point. The girls fawned over him even more.

"Oh my gosh he is so adorable!"

"It's so sweet how he clearly likes this girl!"

"He seems so innocent and naïve!"

"He's so sweet and shy!"

"This girl must surely like you!" They were fawning over how adorable Mikado's innocent crush was.

Mikado felt like this wasn't doing any good, just embarrassing him. Masaomi proceeded to flirt with some of the girls there who, to Mikado's surprised, actually went for it. These girls actually seemed to be falling for his cheesy pick-up lines and over the top ego. It would have made Mikado laugh if he wasn't feeling so self-conscious. Before they knew it, the rest of the host club was surrounding them, along with the rest of the girls. Apparently everyone here was curious about the two newbies. Mikado really wanted to slap Masaomi for this…

"Hey, what's with these two guys?" A red-haired guy prodded.

Tamaki proceeded to explain the situation, again, to the rest of the hosts.

The red-head and his identical twin each leaned over a different side of Mikado's shoulder.

"So, Mikado, have you-"

"-learned anything useful yet from our-"

"Wonderful club!" The last part they said in unison.

Mikado startled from their unexpected closeness.

"Um-um, n-not really. Mostly I've just heard that you guys know what you're doing and fawning over how cute my crush was. I haven't learned anything yet."

"Mika-chan! Maybe you could have some cake with me!" A small blonde boy cheered. A tall dark guy behind him seemed to nod at this.

More girls swooned. Mikado didn't know what to do.

One of the host club members who had short brown hair, and feminine features, seemed to look at Mikado with sympathy.

He saw Tamaki kneel in front of one girl, and tenderly grasp her chin."You see Mikado, sometimes to win her affections, you simply have to look her directly in the eyes and tell her how beautiful of a woman she truly is." The girl he was gazing at blushed and fainted as he did this.

Mikado couldn't take it anymore. Mikado nervously stood up from the couch and bowed to everyone.

"I-I'm so sorry, b-but I don't think this is helping me at all." Mikado tried to run to the door, but felt his arm grabbed.

"Oh, c-mon Mikado! I really am trying to help you here man." Masaomi, who had been the one to grab Mikado's arm, implored.

"I agree! We simply cannot let you out into the world with such horrid women wooing skills." Tamaki added.

Mikado looked back to see the brunette host from earlier sigh.

"Sempai, we should just let him go. He clearly doesn't want to be here, and has acted embarrassed the whole time. I don't think he wants this." They expressed.

"Of course my friend here wants this! He just doesn't realize it." Masaomi contended.

"Besides, they show great promise. They've already won over many of the girls here at our club." Tamaki pressed.

Just then evil laughter sounded and a girl with red hair appeared rising from a platform on the floor. What in the world! Mikado thought. This place was weird.

"If these two newbies show promise that what better way to help than by making them hosts!" The new red-haired girl exclaimed.

"What an excellent idea Renge!" Tamaki cheered.

"That one is very similar to Tamaki, yet not nearly as polite. He'd be the funny flirty type! And that one over there is clearly the shy and innocent type," The girl, Renge, speculated.

"Join a club where we constantly flirt with ladies? Count me in!"

"N-n-no way! I am not doing that!" Mikado flustered again."We don't even go here!"

"Oh, c-mon Mikado! It's not like we have school right now anyways." Masaomi had tried to say that part quieter, but it was still heard.

Raira academy had been temporarily shut down due to the dangers of all of the gang violence. It wasn't the only place in the city that had shut down. The war had gotten really bad…

"You're the one who's always concerned about staying on top of school work. Besides, it would be better than doing nothing."

Mikado sighed."How would we get in though? You have to have a parent enroll you!" Mikado hadn't told his parents yet about Raira's temporary closing. He didn't want them to worry and make him come back to Saitama.

"Don't worry about that. We have ways to make that work."

Mikado and Masaomi looked over to who had spoken. It was that the guy they had learned was named Kyoya. The one who had spoken to them first when they came to the club. He had been quiet during most of their conversation. As Kyoya had said this, light seemed to glint off of his glasses as he coolly pushed them up on his nose.

Mikado couldn't help but wonder how they would 'make that work' if he didn't have a parent enroll him. For some reason this unnerved Mikado. This Kyoya seemed very confident in the ability to do something he shouldn't be able to do. This made Mikado wonder what other things members of this club could get away with. Somehow though, Mikado got the feeling that he wouldn't really be given the chance to think that over though.

"Well, I guess you won't leave me alone until I say yes, right?" Mikado asked resignedly.

Masaomi smiled gleefully and shook his head.

"Fine." Mikado said, defeated.

"But wait, why don't you boys have school right now?" One of the girls asked.

Masaomi slung his arm over Mikado again."Oh, because, in the city where we live there is a multitude of gang violence that was very dangerous! The school thought everyone would be safer not traveling through the city until the police had fixed everything."

"Oh my!"

"That is so scary!"

"You must be so brave!"

"Good thing you'll be able to come to Ouran!"

"Have you ever seen any of the gang violence before?"

"Yep, it was pretty scary. I had to save Mikado and myself once from a gang!"

"Um, you're the one who got yourself into that in the first place, Masaomi!"

"Yeah? Well at least I didn't stupidly run up to a gang with no plan!"

"Well I couldn't very well just let that gang get you!"

"Please, if it wasn't for the distraction of the slasher we both would have been done for."

The two boys started laughing.

The feminine brunette host smiled after seeing the nervous boy finally laughing him. She had felt bad for him earlier.

Masaomi was answering most of the girls' questions about their city.

"The slasher? What's that?"

"Another dangerous thing in Ikebukuro. But, I think the slasher is gone now."

"Thing? What do you mean?"

"Well, the slasher was rumored to be not human."

"Not human? Well what was it?"

"I'm not sure, but whatever it is it seems to have disappeared thankfully."

"Your city sounds very scary."

"Yeah, it can be at times. That's why I had to watch out for this guy."

"You're such a good friend to him!"

"Hey, I can handle myself now!"

"Oh, sure you can!"

"You're not exactly as tough as you pretend either."

"Were either of you two involved in any of the gang stuff occurring?"

Everyone looked at her, wondering why she would ask that. The two boys stopped teasing each other and froze. They turned to each other sharing a look and then both laughed nervously.

"No! Of course not! Why would you ask something silly like that?"

Mikado was paler than Masaomi."Y-y-y-yeah. Umm, I-I m-mean I'm uh s-stil newer to the city. I-I don't even know anything about g-gang stuff." Mikado's smile was very fake.

Masaomi shot Mikado a look to tell him how much of an idiot he seemed like, and then put on a genuine smile."I mean, especially after how dangerous I described the gang wars to be."

He pinched Mikado's cheeks."Just look at this innocent child-like face. There's no way he could harm a butterfly let alone be involved in some shady gang drama!"

Mikado smiled and blushed.

Masaomi then proceeded to show himself off with his 'model' poses."Plus, look at moi. I'm too concerned with flirting with gorgeous ladies to get involved in that stupid stuff. Along with protecting my small-town friend here.

I'm sorry if I seemed rude miss, that was not my intention. That was indeed, a very funny joke."

The girl who had asked the question blushed at this. It was obvious to the people there that the two were acting nervous from the question, but they definitely didn't seem the gang type.

Renge was still there, even though everyone forgot, and put her fingers to her chin in contemplation.

"It appears these two have another characteristic to add to their appeal." She stood next to them and dramatically put her hands in the air as though mapping out a word. "Mystery! Oh, how good business will get from this unusual duo!" She disappeared into the floor again.

* * *

After that it was time for the girls to leave.

Tamaki dramatically pointed a finger in Mikado's face."Soon, you will begin your host training! It appears your friend has an advantage in this to you, but he also needs to learn about etiquette. Before the next meeting we shall size you for uniforms!" And with that Tamaki dramatically left the room along with some of the others in the room.

Masaomi left too, but Mikado knew that Masaomi would wait for him before they both headed for the bus.

The brunette from earlier sighed and walked over to him."Hi, I'm Haruhi Fujioka. I didn't get the chance to introduce myself earlier with all of the chaos. I'm sorry you were forced into this club."

Mikado sighed."I-it's alright. Thank you though." He bowed to Haruhi, who smiled warmly.

"I was forced into this club too."

"Really? How?"

"I broke an expensive vase and have to pay off my debt."

"Oh that sucks, I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. It really isn't as bad as you think though. I actually enjoy it now sometimes. Plus, they might actually be able to help you. I know their methods seem over the top, but Tamaki is actually very good at helping people. It just might take him some time to discover what the real solution is rather than just using his normal over the top girl swooning methods." She laughed after saying this, and Mikado let out a small laugh as well.

Wow, this Haruhi seemed really wise. Mikado had the feeling that he might become good friends with them.

"Thank you, I really appreciate it."

Haruhi nodded. Mikado thought their name seemed like a girl name, but thought he probably shouldn't mention that.

"So um, about when that girl asked about gang stuff earlier? Don't let it bother you. I could tell it made you nervous. Don't let the people here pry if it's something you don't want to talk about. As you can tell, our members are extremely nosy people. But it's really none of their business. You don't have to let them get to you. I can help you with that if you want."

Mikado looked at Haruhi.

They were seriously the nicest person here Mikado had met. He was glad they were here. Without thinking Mikado hugged Haruhi, he felt them stiffen in surprise from the sudden hug. Immediately he pulled away blushing, and looking away from them. Guys didn't really hug each other much, unless they were good friends. Talk about awkward…

"I-I'm so sorry. I-I don't know what came over me." Mikado was blushing again. He really felt like he messed up everything.

"Mikado, it's okay. Really."

Mikado looked up and saw a light blush dusting Haruhi's cheeks, but Haruhi was smiling shyly.

"I really don't mind. I'm not one of those people completely against human contact. That is, as long as it's not pushy like the twins." Haruhi laughed after saying this.

Mikado couldn't help but feel like Haruhi was a girl. Then again, maybe like Haruhi had said earlier, it probably wasn't his business. Haruhi would be his friend, that's all that mattered. Just like how he was okay being friends with Anri. Mikado didn't understand why Masaomi was always pushing Mikado to take the next step. It was bad enough that Masaomi had figured out he had a crush on Anri. Haruhi and Mikado chatted as they left the room.

They were unaware that a certain pair of "Devil-type" twins had been spying on them the whole time.

 **A/N: This is most likely going to be a short story, but it's not finished yet. Please let me know what you think**.


	2. Chapter 2 (Being a Host)

**A/N: Sorry for the late update. I've been working on multiple stories at once. Enjoy :-)**

Chapter 2

Mikado was standing in music#3 during his first day as an official host. Looking down at the outfit he felt ridiculous wearing he had begun to reflect on what had led to him being in this position.

* * *

The next day, after being introduced to Ouran's host club, Mikado and Masaomi somehow found themselves enrolled at Ouran. They were in the same class as Haruhi and the Hitachiin twins. Mikado was a little relieved that he was in the same class as one of his new friends here at Ouran. It made him feel a little more comfortable. The other host club members would often make him feel uncomfortable. They had such big and outgoing personalities. He was used to Masaomi being like that though.

Mikado and Masaomi would normally sit behind them in class. Masaomi seemed to get along with the twins pretty well.

Since Ouran was a bit of a bus ride to take every day, it was decided they should live closer to Ouran Prep. Mikado and Masaomi had decided to share an apartment that was close to the school. Haruhi had offered for Mikado to stay with them, Mikado didn't want to impose on them. Also, he was very hesitant to accept the same invitation to stay that Tamaki had offered to Masaomi and himself. They found that the Host Club paid for this apartment as well.

Masaomi's parents had no problem with him staying in a shared apartment with a friend. After all, it got him out of the currently still dangerous city. Plus, they were happy that Masaomi was taking an interest in his school studies for once (or at least that is how they wanted to see it).

* * *

Mikado and Masaomi were expected to show up at music room#3 early after school that day to begin their host training. Mikado's consisted of talking to the guests while Masaomi's consisted of manners and etiquette, since he already knew how to flirt, such as how to serve his guests correctly. Evidently it seemed that Masaomi struggled with this. He dropped his tray holding desserts and cups of commoners' tea several time. Each time Kyoya wrote down how much money he'd be owing the club from breaking the china teacups. Mikado couldn't help but feel amused by his friend's clumsiness.

His training however went very differently. Tamaki was teaching him how to talk charmingly to guests. For some reason he had Mikado practice on Haruhi, which just made him blush. The twins seemed very protective of Haruhi, hugging Haruhi from behind the whole time he was attempting to practice. He just couldn't do it! He got too nervous. Plus, Masaomi pointed out to Tamaki (after dropping another tray with expensive china on it) that Mikado had a fine enough time speaking kindly to girls when he as being himself and when he wasn't putting so much pressure on himself.

Finally after some intervening from Renge (who rose from the floor again) it was decided that it was best for Mikado to be himself when talking to guests. They would figure out how he should act differently with his crush later. Also, since Masaomi was unable to carry a tray correctly, Mikado would carry Masaomi's tray to Masaomi's guests for him (which just couldn't make Mikado stop laughing at).

Their stations would be right next to each other anyways. The girls seemed to swoon more when the best friends were with each other anyways. They seemed to love how close the best friends were. A least, that's how it seemed on the day they had a 'practice round' as hosts.

* * *

However, the first day the duo came to the host club, they were not aware that someone was already suspicious of the secret past they wished to hide. The moment the two Raira boys entered the music room, Kyoya noticed the yellow scarf around the boy's neck. He had remembered seeing some rumors about a group wearing yellow scarves around their necks on the internet.

His suspicions seemed even more supported when the two boys acted nervous when one girl asked them if they had been involved in anything gang related. He decided for now that he would have to keep an eye on these two. This was to ensure that no trouble were to come to the host club.

It was part of the reason he had set up for them to go to Ouran and paid for their new apartment. Since they were already being seen as host club material, he figured keeping them close was a good way to keep an eye on them.

He didn't share his suspicions with the others because he was curious to see what would happen. That, and some of their members had a tendency to overreact to unexpected information. He wouldn't get the chance to explain that he had a plan before some of their morons were to react drastically (like they normally do).

* * *

After watching Haruhi's conversation with the new guy Mikado, the twins had exchanged a look. As Mikado left to join Masaomi, the twins came up behind Haruhi and each wrapped an arm around her shoulders like they often did.

"Hey Haruhi."

"Yes? What do you want?"

They pouted at her lack of reaction from their 'sneak attack'.

"We couldn't help but notice your conversation there with that Mikado guy."

"What was that about?"

Haruhi sighed."Figures you two were watching. What do you mean by what was that about?"

"Oh, well you know. Just the fact that he seemed to have-"

"-Thought it was okay to just hug you-"

"-even though you two just met."

"Does he suspect you of what you are?" They asked that in unison. All three of them knew what the twins were talking about.

"-Because you know-"

"It's really not very common to just-"

"-hug another guy like that."

"That is unless they're close."

"I mean, we've already established that he's not gay."

"So it seems like he would have suspected something."

Haruhi just shrugged at that."I don't know. I mean, he didn't ask me if that's what you're wondering. And you both know that I wouldn't have told him. I think though that if he does suspect that I'm a girl, he probably wouldn't spread that though. He seems like a nice enough guy. Plus, he's way to shy to say something like that out loud."

The twins seemed to pause in contemplation at that.

"Hmm, alright."

"But just so you know-"

"We'll still be watching him-"

"-for your own sake of course."

Haruhi rolled her eyes at their paranoia. Honestly, she appreciated that they cared, but sometimes they took their overprotectiveness a little too far. She just hoped they wouldn't do anything to that poor guy.

* * *

So again, here Mikado was at the host club. His first day happened to be one of the dress up days. They were dressed up as their 'types' as Renge put it. The Hitachiin twins were both wearing 'sexy' (emphasis on the air quotes) devil costumes. One of them wore a pink devil costume while the other one wore a blue devil costume. The girls seemed to love it though. Mikado had to admit that the whole 'forbidden brotherly love' act still creeped him out at times. Even though he had figured out that it was fake.

The small host they called Honey wore what appeared to be a light baby blue onesie with what appeared to be little kitten faces at the footie end. The girls cooed and swooned over how adorable he looked. Behind him stood Mori in what appeared to be a secret service type of security guard outfit.

Tamaki was in what appeared to be a Prince Charming outfit, which seemed to match his over-the-topness perfectly.

Kyoya, even though not entertaining guests, wore what appeared to be a nice cool black suit.

Haruhi wore simple commoner boy's clothes. They wore a blue t-shirt that seemed a little big on them and yellow baggy shorts. It seemed to match their simple natural style.

Masaomi wore what Mikado thought was supposed to be like a 'gangster'. Except, it looked to Mikado more like what he would normally wear when dressed casually. The main difference being that he wore a Raira-blue baseball cap with the brim facing the side. Also, he wore sunglasses with the lenses being yellow. Mikado supposed that Renge was trying to go for the 'mysterious' part of his type?

Masaomi was trying to act cool with his guests. Yet, just like the first day, these Ouran girls actually seemed to go for it. Mikado would have laughed at Masaomi's getup if it weren't for his current situation.

If they were supposed to be dressed as their types, that why was he forced to wear a pink bunny suit? It was so embarrassing, and he was pretty sure that his blush matched the color of the suit. The girls swooning over it didn't help at all. Haruhi had told him that the twins had tried to get them to wear it once. That almost helped knowing he wasn't the only one considered for the ridiculously cute costume. Almost.

"Mikado, you have your first guest for today."

Mikado sighed as he picked up his tray. As he turned around his eyes grew to be the size of plates when he saw who had requested him.

"A-Anri!" He stumbled and nearly dropped his tray from shaking hands. Seeing his balance difficulty, Anri immediately bent over and helped him catch the tray. Their fingers somehow managed to be on top of each other on the underside of the tray. They locked eyes for a moment, but then both immediately looked away. They quickly set the tray down on the table and took a step away from each other avoiding eye contact.

For some reason, Anri was wearing one of the yellow dresses that the Ouran girls usually wore. Mikado couldn't help but think that she looked absolutely beautiful in that dress. This didn't help with the heat already coming to his cheeks. He hadn't really seen her in yellow before, but he decided that it suited her rather well.

Both of them were blushing rather brightly. Partially from what happened while catching the tray and partially from the fact that he was wearing a pink bunny suit.

Mikado was sweating profusely wondering what he should do. He was completely mortified.

* * *

They were unaware that the whole interaction was being watched. A little farther back in the room Tamaki, Masaomi, and the twins were watching them. The twins had thought it would be funny to get him to wear the bunny suit. However, none of the four expected the girl he was crushing on to show up here since she was from Ikebukuro. After seeing his reaction to his crush being here, the twins instantly felt bad for making him wear that.

Almost as though all four of them shared the twins' telepathy, they all locked eyes with each other and nodded, as though a plan had already been made. The twins rushed over there, grabbed Mikado, and took off with him. Anri looked in the direction Mikado was taken completely confused. Then she looked over and saw Masaomi kneeling and handed her a white rose. She blushed and took it from him.

"Mikado will be back soon." Masaomi said as he stood up. "In the meantime, let's catch up a bit. It's been a while.

* * *

The twins dragged Mikado into one of the changing rooms.

"Hey! W-what are you doing!?" Mikado cried out.

"We're sorry about the whole bunny thing."

"We didn't realize your crush would be here."

"I mean, we're not that cruel after all."

Tamaki rushed into the changing room and looked through the many outfits that the host members had hung up. Tamaki picked one up and showed it to the twins for their opinion. The both raised their thumbs. Then, before he knew it, the twins were ripping the bunny suit off and helping him change despite many protests from the shy boy. It happened so fast before Mikado could even really think about it.

* * *

Masaomi and Anri were catching up with things that had been occurring in their lives when Tamaki swung by and dragged Masaomi away. Before Anri could even react the twins flew past and dropped Mikado exactly where Masaomi had been seconds before.

Off to the side Masaomi could be heard exclaiming, "A little warning would have been nice! You could have just told me he was back! You didn't have to drag me away like that!"

Anri couldn't help but gape at the Mikado before her. He was wearing a really nice tuxedo. He looked like he was still trying to get his bearings. He looked down to see that he was no longer wearing a bunny suit and instead looked rather nice. He scratched the back of his head and blushed, giving Anri a shy smile.

Anri looked down and blushed lightly, because he did indeed look very handsome like that.

Then, remembering where he was, Mikado cleared his throat causing Anri to look back up at him. He held up his tray and motioned towards the chairs by the table.

"Shall we catch with things then, A-Anri?"

She smiled and nodded. They both sat at the table.

* * *

Back where they had been watching the whole thing, the four high fived each other and cheered each other on for how well their plan had gone.

They both sat and started talking just to catch up with each other. Mikado offered her snacks from the tray, but she opted just to have some tea.

"So, um, what are you doing here anyways Anri? I mean, um, not that I don't want you here! In fact, I'm very happy that you're here! Um…" Mikado blushed again and laughed nervously.

Anri blushed also and giggled lightly at his cuteness.

"Um, well, I had been wondering why I hadn't seen you two around Ikebukuro in a while. Then Celty told me that you two had gone to join a host club in Ouran. Since I don't really have many other friends back home, I decided to come to Ouran as well so I could come see you. After all, Raira isn't open right now anyways. Mr. Akabayashi didn't mind signing me up to go to Ouran. He has an apartment near Ouran anyways so he said I could stay there with him while I'm going to Ouran Prep."

Mikado smiled at Anri. He felt kind of bad for leaving Anri, but that wasn't entirely his fault. The important thing was that she was here now and that made him very happy. Especially since she had come here specifically for them.

"Well, like I said. I'm very happy you're here."

"Yeah..."

"So, um, how is being a host?"

"Um, I'm not really sure yet to be honest. This is my actually first official day."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, um, we had to go through a type of host training before we could officially be considered hosts."

"Training? What sort of training?"

"Well, um, we had to learn how to do things like how to serve guests properly. Masaomi was pretty clumsy at that part." Mikado said the last part quietly. Anri giggled quietly to herself at the thought of their silly friend dropping an elegant looking serving tray.

Masaomi had heard Mikado anyways, and had to restrain himself from retorting.

"Also, um, apparently I had to learn how to talk to our females guests properly, being polite enough, and um um f-flirting." Mikado trailed off as he said that last part, blushing and looking away from Anri. Unbeknownst to him, Anri was blushing as well.

"Yeah…Although, Masaomi fits in perfectly as a host though."

Anri snuck a glance at Masaomi who was back to entertaining some girls and then she laughed at her friend's antics. Mikado laughed too.

"I get the feeling it might end up being fun though."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, at least that's what my friend Haruhi says."

"So, you've already made some new friends here?"

Mikado shrugged. "Just the one so far. I'll definitely enjoy being a host if I'm hosting you though."

Masaomi made a fist pump, feeling proud of what his friend had just said to the sexy Anri. (He was eavesdropping on their conversation while still hosting his own guests.)

As though realizing what he had said to Anri, Mikado blushed yet again and laughed shyly. Anri gave him a shy smile again, except this time she didn't look away from him. They both glanced down to see how close their hands were to each other on the table. They weren't even sure if they were thinking about it as their hands inched closer to each other. The closest they got to each other though was their fingertips just barely brushing against each other, but they were okay with that. It was a start. They looked at each other again and shared a warm smile.

"You know, Mikado, I think I will definitely come back to this club."

"I would very much so enjoy that if you do, Anri."

 **A/N: If you're wondering why Mikado refers to Haruhi has them instead of he/she, it's because he's unsure of whether she is a guy. That, and I find it weird to write he since I already know that she's a girl.**


	3. Chapter 3 (The First Domino)

Chapter 3

The time came for the girls at the club to leave. Mikado bid Anri goodbye and promised to see her again next time. After the last girl left, Mikado was jumped on from behind as his best friend clung onto him. The scene could almost be likened to that of a baby monkey hanging off of its mother's back.

"M-Masaomi!" Mikado choked out from Masaomi's sudden weight as he hung onto Mikado. Mikado wasn't very strong to begin with, and Masaomi weighed more than him. The twins fell to the floor and laughed hysterically. Tamaki hunched over and also laughed hard. Haruhi's cheeks covered with a light pink as they covered their mouth and giggled at the humorous display of the two friends.

Mikado blushed again, thankful at least that the girls didn't manage to see his friend's silliness. Mikado groaned. Since he was not very strong to begin with, Masaomi's combined weight caused the two of them to topple onto the ground.

The three laughing male hosts were now crying from laughing so much. Mikado groaned again, this time from the painful impact. Masaomi laughed nervously and blushed as he awkwardly got off of Mikado.

"Um, sorry about that."

Mikado managed to stand up again and glared at his friend in annoyance.

"I just couldn't help myself!" He hugged Mikado from behind. "My little Mikado did so well interacting with the boobaliciously hot Anri!" He wiped away an imaginary tear. "I'm just so proud of my little flirt apprentice. It'll be no time at all now before you're boyfriend and girlfriend, shacking up, and I'm your best man at the wedding!"

Mikado shrugged Masaomi off of him and crossed his arms. He was blushing again.

"M-Masaomi! I told you not to call her that! And-and who said anything about shacking up or marriage!?"

Haruhi walked over to them and put a hand on Mikado's shoulder.

"I think Mikado is doing just fine taking his time with this girl. There is nothing wrong with that. Plus, he seemed to do a good job today just talking with her."

Mikado glanced at Haruhi and gave a small smile.

"Th-thank you, Haruhi."

They smiled back and removed their hand from Mikado's shoulder. Tamaki seemed to have finally caught his breath as he walked over to them. He pointed his finger in Mikado's face again, which Mikado couldn't help but flinch at. It really was rather annoying that this guy kept doing that.

"You have done very well today, I agree. That girl is sure to be yours before you know it!"

"W-well, I didn't say that she would mine-"

"However, it is clear that we still have work to be done. We need to have you practice talking with girls more. That way, you can eventually work up the courage to ask this Anri out!" Tamaki started walking around to the other hosts barking orders about some sort of plan to help Mikado out. Mikado just sighed, figuring that nothing he could say would stop this guy from enacting a plan. Haruhi just shook her head at the club's usual hijinks. Masaomi laughed at the whole situation.

* * *

So, here Mikado was. It was another day at the host club. Anri had been coming consistently now. Mikado and Anri would get a good chance to catch up and simply hangout with each other. Although, the other host members were always pushing for Mikado to take the next step with Anri and to finally ask her out.

This time, Mikado had been informed ahead of time that Anri was being stalled so he could get some time practicing with other girls before trying out what he learned on Anri. Mikado sighed at the thought, still horribly embarrassed by this whole ordeal. At least he would get to see Anri. That was the main plus side.

Today was thankfully a normal dress up day, which meant that the hosts were wearing their normal Ouran Prep uniforms. Mikado was definitely relieved he wouldn't be wearing anything ridiculous this time. Plus, Anri seemed to have liked the way the Ouran uniforms looked.

Mikado was talking with some girls he was hosting. Masaomi was near him chatting with his guests like he normally was (although when Anri was around, Mikado would usually be given more space).

The girls were asking Mikado questions about his life and how he ended up where he was. He didn't mind talking about something so normal. They seemed to love hearing how down to earth his life was. Even though this made him blush, Mikado really didn't mind talking with them. Maybe talking with girls was becoming easier for him. Mikado thought he should perhaps thank the annoying blonde duo after all.

Mikado was describing his hometown Saitama when he overheard,

"Excuse me, but who are you? I don't believe I've seen you around here before."

At the moment, Mikado was too caught up in hosting, that he didn't catch how suspicious the question seemed that Kyoya had directed at somebody. He just figured it was another new guest or something. However, Mikado heard a maniacal laugh. The new person answered,

"Oh, you most likely haven't. You see, I'm not a student. Ha! Well, I'm sure you could probably tell that based on how old I look." Mikado froze, recognizing the voice of the new guest. Gulping, Mikado looked over towards the entrance. He paled after seeing the very person he feared he heard. Standing in front of Kyoya was the raven-black-haired, parka wearing, information broker Izaya Orihara.

"You see, Mr. Ootori, I was just here hoping to visit a specific host." Izaya looked directly at Mikado who quickly glanced away. Mikado didn't notice how the girls he was hosting looked at him with concern.

Tamaki bounded over to Kyoya and Izaya.

"What's going on here? Another new guest who is _also male_? I do believe we advertised that this club was directed towards the entertainment of young ladies. Never the less though, I won't refuse a guest."

Izaya smirked and bowed to the blonde. "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Suoh. My name is Izaya Orihara."

At hearing that name, Masaomi, seeming to forget about his guests, marched over to Izaya with clenched fists.

"Izaya Orihara! What are you doing here!?" Due to Masaomi's outburst, everyone in the room had turned over to see what was occurring in that direction. Tamaki looked back and forth, surprise and confusion spread on his face. Kyoya simply raised an eyebrow at the circumstances.

"Masaomi? You know this man?"

Izaya laughed at Tamaki's question.

"Oh yes. Kida-kun and I go _way_ back."

Masaomi was seething at Izaya's condescending look. He shifted his gaze to Tamaki.

"Sempai, Izaya should not be allowed to visit the host club. He is a danger to the girls."

Tamaki's eyes widened at that. "Danger? What do you mean? Just who is this guy?"

Izaya laughed again. "Why, I am an information broker. In the past, I've interacted with Masaomi on various business occasions regarding gang related activities." Lots of whispering and chattering filled the room at his words.

Mikado didn't need to look up to know that Izaya's gaze was on him now as well.

"I've done business with Mikado-kun as well, also gang related."

Mikado let out a sigh.

"Do you really think you're in a position to be warning of danger Masaomi, hmm?" Izaya leaned in towards Masaomi as he chided. Masaomi took a step back and continued his piercing glare.

"After all, I'm pretty sure gang leaders are better known to be occupied by dangerous people than informants are."

Masaomi froze as Izaya said that.

"Besides, you weren't able to protect miss Saki-chan. Who's to say you won't make the same mistake again? It was your involvement in gangs that got her into danger in the first place. You really think you're any better now just because you've supposedly 'left' that life behind to join a supposedly chivalrous host club? Will they trust you anymore knowing what kind of person you have been? Not so vigilant now are we, hmm~?"

Mikado had a really bad feeling about Izaya being there; especially with what he had just heard Izaya say to Masaomi. Taking a deep breath, Mikado stood up and walked over to where Izaya was. Izaya smirked wide at Mikado. Mikado stood somewhat in front of Masaomi, stretching his arm out slightly in case he needed to hold Masaomi back.

"O-Orihara-san? W-wha- "Mikado cleared his throat. "What are you doing here?"

Izaya's stance relaxed to one that resembled him being carefree. "Well you see, as I was trying to say before Kida-kun so rudely tried to have me thrown out, I had come to speak with a specific new host here."

Mikado had his suspicions as to what kind of conversation Izaya had in mind. Mikado took a step forward and then quietly asked,

"Are you sure you want to do this here?"

Izaya smirked again. "Well you see, Mikado, my sources had told me that the pair of you couldn't be found anywhere in the city. Finally, I gathered that you were here at Ouran. Since you're hosts now, I gathered that you would busy. Plus, since you were already here, I figured I might as well take advantage of the opportunity."

"Just what exactly is it that you wanted to talk about, Izaya?" Masaomi started. "We have no reason to speak with you. That is, not anymore." He narrowed his eyes as he said those last words. Izaya let out a small laugh.

"We may have nothing to speak of, Kida. But I'm not here for you." Izaya indicated Mikado.

"I'm here to speak with Mikado."

"Uh uh!" Masaomi stood in front of Mikado, attempting to block Izaya's view. "No way. We are not letting you talk alone with him. Nope. Just why exactly would you want to speak with Mikado anyways?"

Izaya lifted his eyebrows up in amusement. "Well, I do believe that is none of your business Kida-kun."

Masaomi practically growled at that. Izaya sighed.

"I can assure you though that my objective here wasn't to come and taunt you two- "

"-pfft. Yeah right!"

Izaya rolled his eyes then sighed. He looked at Mikado with eyes that had slightly softened. "This however is regarding…business. That is, business regarding a certain online gang that I need to speak with Mikado about."

Mikado was unsure how to take the change in the man's expression. He's never seen anything like it before from the man. It unnerved Mikado for some reason. As the group pondered a response, a soft gasp could be heard from the door. Th group all turned to face the front to see who had reacted.

Anri was standing there, standing still. She was gaping and her eyes were locked on Izaya. Nobody moved for a moment. Then, after getting over her previous shock, Anri glared at the informant and clenched her fists tightly. She marched over to them. Mikado and Masaomi backed up slightly, anxious because they rarely ever saw her like that, and she stood protectively in front of them. Masaomi lightly grabbed her arms as though afraid he would have to hold her back, despite being near needing that only moments earlier.

As she glared at him, her eyes started glowing red.

Tamaki clumsily stumbled back a couple of feet and let out a small girlish squeal.

"W-w-what is going on!? That girl's eyes are glowing red!" He cried out in shock.

There was more whispering in the room. This time, there were exchanged responses of fear.

Izaya seemed unaffected by the girl's silent threat, and simply smirked at her in an irritating way. The softness previously in his eyes was now gone.

"You know, I thought you would be more careful with who you show your _inhuman_ eyes to."

At his remark, Anri then gasped suddenly, her eyes returning to their normal soft brown. She glanced around at the people around the room, dreading the fearful looks now shot at her. She turned back to Izaya and glared again, yet this time less intensively.

"Guys enough." Mikado finally put in. The group looked towards him. Mikado sighed.

"It's fine. I'll just talk to him about whatever it is he wants."

Masaomi started to protest, but then Mikado shot him a look attempting to warn and reassure his friend. Anri looked confused, but not as much as the other occupants of the host club. Mikado cleared his throat.

"Tamaki Sempai, do you have anywhere more private for Orihara-san and I to converse?"

Tamaki didn't respond for a moment. He was still processing everything he had just witnessed.

Kyoya stepped forward.

"I believe we have an adjourning room to this music room that we will sometimes allow guests who request a private hosting to occupy." Kyoya then looked to Tamaki, as though expecting him to say something. Tamaki then seemed to get his bearings back as he blinked and then nodded.

"Yes, as a matter of fact we do." He cleared his throat. "Masaomi, could you look after Mikado's guests in the meantime?" Tamaki looked over to the girls' Mikado had been hosting. "If that is alright with you young ladies that is." The girls were silent for a moment, but then they nodded shyly and blushed lightly.

Apparently Tamaki had gathered the tension of the situation. It was unusual for him to be willing to take a host away from clients. Nobody was complaining yet though.

Masaomi shot Mikado a concerned look, before going back to his area on the couch to entertain more girls. Anri hung back, and also gave Mikado a worried look.

"M-Mikado? Ar-are you sure about this?" She leaned over to whisper into his ear, "You know the kind of things this man has done."

Mikado blushed slightly at feeling her warm breath against his ear. As she pulled back again, he nodded hesitantly.

"Yes, I'm sure. I can handle this Anri." Mikado responded quietly. Anri let out a sad sigh. She cast Mikado and Izaya another wary glance before going to join Masaomi and the other girls.

Tamaki gave Mikado and Izaya a glance that was difficult to decipher. Mikado wanted to say it was either confusion, concern, wariness, curiosity, or a mix of them.

"Alright then. Gentlemen, follow me."

Mikado picked up a new tray of treats, before following Tamaki into the adjourning room. Izaya followed as well. The table was already set up, as though recently another guest had requested the private room. Tamaki stood to the side as Mikado placed the tray on the table. Mikado wondered if he was supposed to go about the normal procedure as a host. Considering Izaya was a male, Mikado felt extremely awkward about it. Mikado walked over to Tamaki and quietly asked,

"Um, do I…?" Before Mikado could finish his question Tamaki nodded, already knowing what Mikado was going to ask. It was weird seeing Tamaki without that goofy grin on his face. He seemed so serious and oddly guarded. Mikado sighed and blushed as he pulled Izaya's chair out for him. Izaya let out a small chuckle of amusement as he sat in the chair.

"Why, thank you Mikado-kun~."

Mikado avoided looking at the smirk he knew Izaya had plastered on his face. Mikado began to get Izaya's tea set up, asking what preference he had. Then he asked which treats Izaya would like on his plate. After finishing serving him Mikado sat down at his own chair. Izaya looked over Tamaki expectantly, as though wondering why he was still there. Tamaki cleared his throat and walked over to their table. He leaned in towards Izaya and said,

"Just so you know, Mr. Orihara-san, our objective may be to take care of our guests, but we hosts are also very protective of our other hosts. Now I may not know much about you, but I have observed enough to feel the need to say, if in any way shape or form I feel like Mikado has become harmed by you, you will surely regret it for the rest of your life. Am I clear?"

Izaya didn't seem affected at all, except for cocking one of his eyebrows at the unexpected threat. Mikado was completely taken aback. He never expected Tamaki sempai to be so protective of him. Mikado hadn't exactly welcomed him as a friend with open arms. In fact, he had pretty much fought Tamaki's suggestions every step of the way. Mikado didn't really understand why Tamaki was being so protective of him now. Tamaki didn't even know the whole situation, yet guessed from the four's interactions that he should be protective. Mikado definitely looked at Tamaki differently now.

Despite not getting a reaction, Tamaki straightened back up again as his usual smile graced his features again.

"Well, I suppose I'll leave you two to it then. Enjoy your time at the host club~! Oh, and let me know if you need anything. Remember, we're just on the other side of this wall." And with that, Tamaki pretty much danced out of the room. Mikado couldn't help but continue staring after where Tamaki had been. He was still taken aback from the change of character he had just witnessed. A familiar chuckle brought Mikado back to why he was here in the first place. He looked over to Izaya, who was smirking and had amusement gleaming in his crimson eyes.

"So, Mikado. Shall we get started then?"


	4. Chapter 4 (A Choice)

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait for the update. I did kind of leave you hanging with that last chapter. Please let me know what you think!**

Chapter 4

Mikado sighed and turned to face Izaya again in his seat. Mikado narrowed his eyes in suspicion, attempting to portray seriousness to the elder. Izaya simply took a sip of his tea, seemingly ignoring the younger's serious gaze.

"Alright Izaya, what is this all about? You certainly caused quite a scene in there, so this better be worth making a show out of my friends and I."

Izaya finished his sip and simply chuckled at that, grading on Mikado's irritation further.

"I suppose I did make quite a spectacle of you three didn't I, hmm~? Well, that was definitely entertaining, even though it wasn't my intent."

Pfft, Yeah right.

"I mean, I really was just going to go right into having my chat with you. I couldn't help it that Kida-kun reacted that way. Although, it was certainly worth it seeing Kida-kun's hilarious stubborn hatred face." Izaya sighed. "I don't think I will ever tire of getting reactions out of people. He is just too easy at times."

"Izaya…"

"And then Anri comes in to join the party! I didn't even have to anything for her to spice things up. I mean, it is completely on her that she showed her Saika eyes to everyone. I can only imagine how the others in there are reacting to her now."

"Izaya…wha- "

"And the others at this club of yours are so full of character! I mean, did you see how the pres- "

"Izaya!" Mikado stood up from his seat, glaring at Izaya, and slammed the table with his fists causes the contents to vibrate shakily. He was already feeling like he was at his limit.

Izaya shows up out of the blue at a club he already felt very self-conscious being a part of then goes on to carelessly share information with the entire room that wasn't his to share!

Izaya looked momentarily shocked at Mikado's sudden outburst.

Mikado wondered in the back of his mind if the host club could hear his outburst from the other room, but he couldn't focus on that for the moment.

"Just tell me why you came here." Mikado demanded in a voice much quieter than he had used previously. He stated this with an almost eerie calmness. "You already said that you weren't just messing with us, so what business needs to be dealt with?"

If Izaya had been here just to mess with them, he most likely would have just made Masaomi or himself do something ridiculous to entertain him.

"I am not going to deal with your senseless chattering, so please just get to the point."

Izaya raised an eyebrow at this, but then shook off his expression of shock to smirking again.

"Very well then."Izaya began to nibble on some of the desserts on his plate.

Mikado sat back down at his seat, facing Izaya expectantly while trying to maintain his serious appearance. Izaya's eyes softened again as he sighed. He looked down slightly.

"I've been sent to give you a message."

"A message?"

Izaya nodded and looked up again.

"The gang war has gotten _really_ bad in Ikebukuro."

"I know tha- "

"No, I don't think you do." Izaya started gravely. He sighed again. "You know that your school was shut down temporarily, but you don't understand how bad the war has actually gotten. Not really. Multiple schools and businesses have shut down."

The gang wars had gotten worse since Masaomi's confrontation with the traitorous yellow scarves members. Even though he left the gang, that didn't stop the war from happening.

"You can't walk anywhere anymore without seeing some sort of gang fight. It has become _that_ dangerous. The number of gangs involved has increased as well. There's yellow scarves, the blue squares have returned, the dollars- "

"Wait a second, the yellow scarves? I thought they disbanded after- "

"A new leader took over after Horada was arrested."

Mikado gulped at seeing Izaya's intense gaze.

Izaya then pointed to his plate that was now empty. He cleared his throat, directed his gaze to Mikado's treats' tray, then back to his own plate. Mikado just stared at Izaya in bafflement before realizing what Izaya meant. He raised an eyebrow at the elder.

Seriously?

Izaya scoffed in irritation and then tapped his fingers on the table expectantly. Mikado sighed and then walked over to Izaya again with his dessert tray. He asked Izaya what he wanted who pointed, and then Mikado placed the chosen pastries onto Izaya's plate.

He had to ask for treats right after dropping something like that on me? You've got to be kidding me. He can get his own treats himself. He's just taking advantage of the fact that as a host I have to serve him. Great. This was probably very entertaining to him. No wonder he came while the club was in session. Did he plan that?

How could he be so nonchalant about the topic we're discussing? Oh, that's right, he's Izaya Orihara, that's how. Mikado groaned when he heard Izaya chuckle at Mikado's reluctant service.

Mikado sat back down at his seat.

"Who?"

"I don't think his name would mean anything to you anyways since you've been out of the loop for a while now."

Mikado felt a slight pang of guilt after hearing that.

"Anyways, I'm not exactly at liberty to give you the name. That's not why I'm here. Eh hmm"

Izaya playfully dangled his cup in the air indicating that he required it to be filled with more tea.

Mikado scoffed annoyingly and rolled his eyes. He stood up and went over to pour some more tea into his teacup. Sensing his smirk, Mikado thought Izaya was enjoying this way too much. Especially for someone who had brought up such a serious conversation topic.

"This new leader has been bringing other gangs into the war since apparently, he wants to control all the gangs existing in the area. He seems to think he'll get great power from doing that. The Dollars members are being found out and targeted."

Mikado put the teapot back down on the table after filling up the cup, although his hands shook a little after hearing Izaya mention what had been happening with the dollars. After seeing that Izaya didn't need anything else, he sat back at his seat again, but not before cleaning up the few drops of tea he had accidentally spilled.

"Wh-what do you mean Dollars members are being found and targeted? H-how are the other gangs finding out that they're Dollars' members?"

Izaya shrugged aloofly.

"Not sure. There's most likely many ways they are being found out. Some members weren't exactly quiet about being Dollars before the war started. Also, it's not that hard to track an ip address. There's simply many ways they could be found out."

Mikado nodded stiffly.

"I…I see."

"Since the Dollars are such a big and influential gang, it makes sense that they would be targeted in this gang power war. Some members are even active in the fighting themselves. I'm sure those are the ones you are not thrilled about."

Mikado sighed and looked away from his gaze.

"Most of the Dollars' members however don't want this fight. That's why I'm here."

Mikado's eyes widened.

"A client of mine who is an influential part of the dollars paid me to tell you about all of this. They wanted the leader of the dollars to know that the dollars' members re scared and that they need a leader to help them. It's no secret that the dollars' leader hasn't been around in a while. They need your help."

Mikado looked away guiltily. He hadn't realized how bad things had gotten. He didn't even know that dollars members were being targeted! Originally, he had been dragged into this club by his best friend, but he had grown to like it. It was a different kind of exciting than he had originally sought for, but still thrilling. He never knew what to expect with the host club members. And this new situation with Anri…he anticipated that it actually might go somewhere. That was a new situation he looked forward to despite how scary it was.

Before, Mikado had never even considered the idea that a situation that wasn't life threatening still might be thrilling enough for his own satisfaction. Plus, it was a bit of a relief to get the excitement he longed for without his life becoming endangered in the process. Part of him didn't want to leave this type of new life he had become accustomed to.

But at the same time, the consequences of one of his previous excitement-seeking creations were coming back to him. He couldn't abandon the Dollars. Especially if they really needed him. But how could he help though? He didn't know what to do.

"I-Izaya? Why are you doing this?"

"What do you mean? I already told you that a client paid me to say this."

"Y-yeah, but your job is gathering and selling information, not sending a message."

Izaya sighed.

"Well, for one thing, my client knows that I know the identity of the leader of the dollars."

Mikado gave him a deadpan look.

"You're an information broker. That's not very surprising."

Izaya laughed at that, but it didn't sound as genuine as it normally does.

"Very true, Mikado. You are just too much at times."

Mikado's look didn't waver.

"Alright, look, this gang war wasn't a part of my plans, alright?"

"Pfft."

"Hey, maybe I wanted _a_ gang war, but not this. At least, not like this." Izaya got out his flick blade and started playing with it, not looking Mikado in the eyes. His smirk slipped, but he still didn't reveal his true emotions. His mouth was in a straight, difficult to read.

"I like situation where I can control all of the pieces. This…got out of my hands. People are being dragged into this who I did not intend to be pawns. I don't like it when people are affected who I did not plan to be. Not to mention, my reason for starting the first gang war didn't even succeed the way I hoped, so it all seems pretty pointless now."

Mikado didn't entirely understand what Izaya meant by that last statement.

"Yes, I like placing people in situation to get reactions. I have never hidden that fact. However, this whole war is completely pointless. The city is gradually shutting down to the violence, and that's no fun. Who wants to watch people hide in their house all day? And as for the ones who are out and about, I would really rather not watch the same idiotic gang fights using the same repetitive and uninteresting fighting strategies over and over again. So, I am not happy with this war at all."

Even though this sounded like an Izaya response, Mikado couldn't help but feel like there was something else as well.

Izaya stopped fidgeting with his flick blade and set it down on the table, twining his own fingers to rest over it.

"I don't like there to be senseless killing throughout the city. Even though I admit that I'm not the kindest person, I'm not a sociopath. I actually do have a conscious, believe it or not, and I actually do feel something about people dying. Especially with the way they could be due to the gang fights. I might have initially started this, but it grew into something that was not mine. I felt it was the least I could do to deliver this message to you. This war has to stop."

Mikado was not sure he correctly heard what Izaya had just said. He took a moment to process all of this. Thankfully, Izaya didn't interrupt his thoughts.

"I-Izaya…san? W-what do you think I should do?"

Izaya slipped his knife back into his coat and looked at Mikado.

"Well, I'm not certain, Mikado-kun. You are the leader of the dollars after all. I have a few ideas on possibilities to stop the war, but it's up to you. There's a reason I left the dollars to you and didn't take it over from you."

Wait a second…

"You're a smart boy. You can surely think of something to deal with this mess. That's why I waited to do anything before giving you this message. I had a feeling you might be able to come up with something." Izaya's smirk came back as though it had never left.

"So, Mikado-kun? What do you say? Are you willing to lead the Dollars to handle this wat? They're your gang after all. Surely you have an idea on how to lead them. That could be clearly seen when you took down Yagiri Pharmaceuticals. You do have options after all though. You could do nothing and continue playing in this silly host club entertaining girls who probably don't even deserve it. There you can charm your troubles away, and probably get together with that parasite Anri who you so obviously are crushing on hard. Yes, that option would definitely seem like the easier and more desirable one.

However, by doing so, you would be abandoning the gang which you had created. They would most likely be defeated by the other gangs and cease to exist. Who knows how many of them would die because of your disappearance? One gang, not the dollars, would finally take over the others but by doing so, nearly destroying the city. Not to mention, anarchy would most likely break out. "

Was Izaya Orihara trying to guilt him into saying yes?

"Or, you could leave behind the comfortable host club and abandon your position as a host, and come to the aid of your desperate lower gang members. You would come up with a probably very intelligent solution to solve the whole gang mess. Either it works or it doesn't. If it works, the war is over and you get everything you want. If it doesn't, more people die including possibly yourself."

Why was he telling me all of this?

"Although, I suppose if you wanted, I could take over the Dollars for you. Temporarily or permanently, you would decide. However, I get the feeling you would not like that idea very much."

Somehow, Mikado felt like Izaya didn't care one way or another about being leader.

"Just because I'm opposed to the idea of many in a city dying senselessly, doesn't mean I'm all of the sudden a person with good moral now. A 'kind-hearted' kid as yourself would not want someone like me in their place as a gang leader. You could leave someone else in charge of the Dollars, but somehow, I feel like you're too possessive to do something like that.

So, like I've said, there are options. Of course, you don't have to make a decision right now. But the clock is ticking as more fights break out. What do you say?"

Mikado pondered all that Izaya said. He began to thoroughly think over which decision would be best. Clearly excitement would exist on either side, but in different ways. Mikado had to take responsibility for the group he had created. It was only right. But, he had never been prepared for a situation like this. He didn't want to let anyone down. What should he do?

 **A/N: Does anyone have any predictions on where this story will go? Let me know in a pm or review.**


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